Cutting the Emotional Cord to the Past: On Addiction, Trauma, and Evil Female Robots.

Last updated on: August 19, 2014 at 1:17 pm by Andrew Schwab

Cutting the Emotional Cord to the Past: On Addiction, Trauma, and Evil Female Robots. 2014-08-19T13:17:57-07:00 Andrew Schwab

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…in many cases, destructive habits have their roots in the scarring events of our lives. Most addictions are coping mechanisms that we develop to “manage” the unresolved pain we feel deep down from these episodes. And it can be very difficult to let go of our habitual cycles of self-destruction until we “deal” with the pain from our wounds. – The Tin Soldiers, p. 71

When I was six years old, I went with a friend and his parents to see Superman III. I was a huge fan of the first two movies, so I was super excited to see the third installment.

I enjoyed the movie up until the very end, which was when I witnessed something that absolutely scarred me for life. In that scene, a supercomputer became self-aware and transformed a woman into an evil robot.

Sounds pretty harmless, right? But words cannot explain how much this scene terrified me as a child (It was even worse than the brain insects from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan). It took me months to get the images out of my head. I felt like that robot was following me everywhere I went.

Not long ago, the movie was on cable. I hadn’t seen it in years. When the robot scene finally came I couldn’t believe how cheesy it was. I actually laughed out loud. But somewhere, deep inside me, those feelings of terror from long ago crept in, just a little. Even though my brain told me what I was watching was not scary in the least, my past emotions somehow still had the ability to skew reality.

In a similar way, past trauma can warp the present because of the deep hurts that are dormant inside of us. Damaging experiences like abuse or the tragic loss of a loved one can change the way we view the world, and especially, the way we view ourselves. In essence, our wounds cause us to lose the ability to see reality, the truth of who we really are, what we are capable of, and the people we were created to be.

Again, addictions are, many times, compensations for childhood trauma. Our habits numb the dull aches we carry with us for a short time. The problem, however, is that the aches always return, and in the process, we lose a bit of ourselves every time we indulge in said habits. Eventually, the habits take away more than they give us relief.

Enter Jesus, whose real goal is to get us to see things accurately and objectively. To make this happen, He will cut the emotional cord to the past. How can He do this? Supernaturally, through repeated prayer. Miraculously, through the laying of hands. Through counsel, the study of truth, and worship He changes our interpretation of the past, and therefore ourselves. He knows perspective is everything. Because if you can see Him for who He really is (all-powerful love), you can see the trauma for what it really was (an unfortunate event that has no power over you), and yourself for who you really are (completely unique, valuable, and generated for an important function on earth).

If you are caught in a habit you can’t seem to get out of, retrace your steps backward, holding the hand of Jesus with each stride. Walk back through memories, reliving each signpost in the progression of your vice, no matter how painful. Each time you stop at an important event in your history, sit in the emotions with Him. Go all the way back, to the painful memories which became fodder for the inception of your addiction. Ask God to take you deep down and meet you in your pain. Ask Him to take it. Ask Him to help you forgive. Ask Him to heal. This is the first step in finding a new life, free from the ghosts of our past.

“I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten, the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm, my great army that I sent among you.” – Joel 2:25

This is an excerpt from the forthcoming Tin Soldiers Study guide. When combined with The Tin Soldiers book it forms a complete 52-week curriculum for personal study and small groups. Preorder your copy here and get the book and t-shirt at a special price as well.

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